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He rangatira katoa tātou, kore tika, kāua e tito.
Ko ngā kupu tohutohu ēnei a Nanny Hariata. Nō te tau kotahi mano, kotahi ngāhuru mā iwa ka whānau a Hariata Ririnui (nee Crampton).
Ko Ngapi tōna matua wahine. He rangatira nō Ngāti Te Iwimokai. Ko Albert Crampton tōna matua tāne, he Pākehā nō Ingarangi.
Kāti, i whānau a Hariata i Te Ruatonga he kāinga rikiriki kai te taha tonga o Te Rotoiti. He whenua i kaha whawhaitia e ngā rangatira onamata, nā reira e whai take ai a Ngāti Moehau, Ngāti Rangipare, Ngāti Hinekura, Ngāti Te Iwimokai ki ngā whenua nāna enei kupu ruarua ki ahau. Ko Te Waikowhatu a Taranui te maunga.
Ko Te Whakaruru te awa, ko Te Rotoiti te moana. Ko Waione te whenua. Nōna e itiiti ai ka whakarere tana whānau i ōna whenua tupu ka aro pū ki Te Matau a Māui. He peita whare te mahi a tōna matua tāne.
E noho ana māua ko Nan Hariata ka hoki mai ngā kōrero ki a ia.Ko ta rātou noho i reira he whaiwhai noa i ngā mahi a tōna matua tāne.Tangi mapū te whatumanawa, hai tāna, kai tetehi rangi e poroporoaki ana ki tōna matua tāne, ka uru mai anipā ki tona wairua, ko te kitenga whakamutunga pea tēnei o tona matua tane ?
Nō te rangi nei, nō te tuatoru o Pepuere, nō te tau kotahi mano, e iwa rau, e toru tekau mā tahi, ka ngaoko te taone, papahoro kau ngā whare nui, me ngā whare iti. Ko te rūwhenua tiketike katoa o Hawaiki Tahutahu o taua taima, e kīa nei ko The Hawkes Bay Earthquake. E whitu ira waru te nui o te kaha o Rūaimoko. Ka whia kē ngā tangata i mate i taotu i whara rānei.
He wharanga hoki a Ngapi nā tēnei aitua. Papahoro katoa te tīmene ki runga ki a ia whati kau ōna waewae. Ka hoki te whānau ki Te Ruato, koina te kāinga i rokohanga mai ōna pakeke e noho ora ana. Ka iti ki mua ka mate a Ngapi. Ka kawea oratia ki Te Iwipouaru. Ko Albert, e ai ki a Nan, tahuri kau tērā tangata ki Akarana ka moe wahine anō ia.
Ka whakatupungia a Hariata me ōna taina e ngā pakeke. Ko Keita Witika tō rātou kuia pakeke, ā, ko Te Poroa tana hoa rangatira.He kuia tuturu a Keita. He tohunga tōna matua tāne, ko Witika Motuoha Te Oraora. He Ringatū a Keita.
Atu i te hāhi, he wahine maia ki te pupuhi tia me te waha poaka. Mō te hetiheti mara, kai a ia katoa. Kāore he painga i a ia mō te mahi. Rangatira ake nei ki te hao kōāiaia, me te nanao kēwai, me te aha noa atu, me te aha noa atu. Engari ko tana tino mahi he whakatupu me te tiaki i tana tororī. Kai ngā pōngiangia tonu o te ihu te kakara o te tororī Māori, kāore e rite ana ki ngā hikareti o naianei, he kaha ake te tororī Māori. Ka oti i a rātou te tiki wai Māori i te awa o Te Whakaruru, ka mā raro ki Pātotara ki reira hetiheti whenua ai.
Ko te reo anahe e papaki kau ana i ngā pātū o te kāinga, he ahakoa he mōhio nō rātou ki te reo Ingarihi. He wāhi whakamiharo hoki ki a ia te kura o Te Rotoiti. Ko Mr. Munroe te tumuaki. He ahakoa he kotimana ia, he tangata mārō, he arero Māori anō nei he pakeke. Ko Nan Rari tōna hoa tata, e wāuna hoki kua mate noa atu hoki a Rari. Engari rā, e noho tahi ana rāua e hoki hoki mai ana ngā pakeke ki a rāua. Ki tūā ki Hauparu ko Makurata, ki Tapuwaekura ko Hona, ko Pika, kātahi hoki a Pika, kāore he wahine hei rite ki a ia te ataahua. Ko Te Popo tō mātou tangata hautu pahi, ko Kataraina Emery kai runga o Te Tūārae, ki Te Ruato nei, ko Te Puehu, ko Horomona, ko Tukiterangi, ko Te Wirihana, ko Pihoihoi me te tokomaha atu.
Ko Te Rangiteaorere ki Matawera, ā, he mana nui tō Te Pukeroa, he mōhio nōna ki a Te Reiwhati me Wiremu Ratana hoki nā te mea he awhina ia nā te Hāhi Ratana.
Nō te tau nei, e rua mano, e rua tekau mā toru ka mate a Nan Hariata. He kotahi rau mā whā te rahi o ngā tau. He kuia pakeke, he kaha ki te kawe i ōna whakaaro, he ora ngā kanohi, he ahakoa e turi ana te taringa, atu i tēnā ehara a Hariata i te kuia totitoti, ehara hoki a Hariata i te kuia māngere. Tūturu ko te tino ao tawhito kua riro atu i ngā wai wawara o Muriwainoho. Haere rā e te ngongorowai tangiwai. Te Pou-kai-āwha o Tarawhai e moe.
We are all chiefs, speak the truth and don’t lie.
A handful of Nanny Hariatas most poignant expressions. Nanny Hariata Ririnui (nee Crampton) was born in the year 1919. Her mother was Ngapi, a woman of regard from Ngati Te Iwimokai, a subtribe of the revered Ngati Tarawhai people of the Okataina region.
Her father was an Englishman, Albert Crampton. She was born and raised at Te Ruatonga; a tiny settlement divided by the stream Te Whakaruru. Due to the nature of her father’s work, Hariata and her siblings smartly travelled around the north island. In 1931, the family had found residence in Hawkes Bay, with her father also finding permanent work as a painter.
She recalled vividly one day that as he rode off on his bicycle to work, she had a funny feeling that it felt as though she would never see him again. On the 3rd of February 1931, Hawkes Bay was overcome with an enormous 7.8 earthquake that devastated the township.
Sadly, though, this event would also cost the life of her mother, Ngapi, who was severely injured after the chimney of their house collapsed upon her. Their father was also lucky as he survived, and promptly, the family returned to Te Ruato, where Ngapi would eventually pass away amongst her people.
Albert left the area to continue his work, placing Nanny Hariata and her siblings in the care of their grandmother Keita Witika, a staunch follower of the Ringatū faith who did not possess one lazy bone in her body. Keita was an expert shooter and was often seen carrying the carcass of either a wild pig or deer down from the heights of Te Waikowhatu a Taranui ranges.
She was a wonder in the garden, famous for producing beautiful pumpkins and the like and her most precious tobacco, the Māori torori. In the summer months, Hariata recalled that with her siblings, they would cover themselves in castor oil and make off the calm waters of Te Rotoiti in search of freshwater crayfish.
During the day, they would fill their tins or buckets with fresh water fetched from the fresh waters of Te Whakaruru. Then, they would be tramping through the bush area to tend to the gardens further south at a place commonly known as The Bull Ring – Nan said its proper name is Pā-totara in recognition of a particular shrub found in the area.
Māori was the only language spoken in their kāinga; however, the kids could talk English due to the whakapapa of their biological father, whom Nan didn’t speak highly of.
The school was a place of fascination; Mr. Munroe was their headmaster, a tall, fair chap, Nan recalled, who was strict but also an expert Maori speaker.
Her best friend at school was Nanny Rari, who passed away not too long ago; however, sitting with these two old ladies was a marvel as they peered into the many crooks of Rotoiti, recalling the older people. Te Popo, who was the local bus driver; Kataraina Emery, the renowned matriarch of Te Rangiunuora, Pika who was a natural wonder of beauty; Makurata, Te Puehu, Tukiterangi, Te Wirihana and many, many more.
Nanny Hariata passed away this year, 2023—an extraordinary lady with a powerful memory, the last genuine living link to the past.
Thank you, Nan.
The wishing tree appeal is in its 31st year and the need for it 'has never been greater'.